Summer is BBQ season, but Health Canada has a warning: wire-bristle BBQ brushes may not be safe.
Health Canada is conducting an investigation into the issue and expects to have results by summer’s end. This comes after nine reports of injuries from wire-bristle brushes since 2011.
These wire bristles, which are used to clean the grill, can get stuck in food and be swallowed. Though these injuries might be uncommon, they can be serious enough to require surgery.
Even if investigators rule these brushes unsafe, they might not be banned outright. It might not even be necessary as social media and traditional media have already been successful in spreading the word. Many people have thrown out their wire-bristle brushes already and stores are on alert for further information.
How dangerous is your BBQ cleaner? It can depend on what it’s made of and how old it is.
Other BBQ cleaning tools are made of wood, stainless steel, cleaning bricks, sprays or nylon brushes.
Have you tossed your wire BBQ brush? What is the best way to clean a BBQ grill? I could use the advice now that I’m about to throw my wire-bristle cleaner in the garbage.
I just threw away mine because of the same concerns about wire brushes. I just purchased The Grill Hog cedar bbq scraper from amazon. Has great reviews and has been working great for me for the couple of times i have used it. Definitely would recommend!
Same here. I tossed my wire bristled brush in the spring and opted for a wooden one from costco for $20. It's not worth the risk of swallowing a metal wire and dealing with the possible health risks afterwards.